Jakarta – Three Indonesian student activists were arrested by police early Tuesday morning at their residence, sources said.

"Three students were arrested after midnight. The police only showed their badges when they arrested two of them, while another was only briefly shown a piece of paper," a student spokesperson of the Indonesian Christian University (UKI) told AFP Tuesday.

"They are currently at the city police headquarters," the student said, declining to be named, adding two of the arrested were UKI students, while the third was from the Indonesian Accounting School (YAI).

The three were identified as UKI economics students Rudi and Edo, and Edo's brother Hendikaro who the spokesperson said was hurt during the arrest.

"We are still wondering about the reason behind the arrest," he said. "During the arrest there were also tens of people on motorbikes terrorizing us by vandalizing several food stalls in front of campus."

The spokesperson rejected the idea the three might have been wanted by police for their involvement in a kidnapping of an intelligence officer during a student protest here last month.

A lawyer from the Indonesian Association for Legal Aid and Human Rights (PBHI) confirmed three students had been arrested and that a number of PBHI lawyers were already on their way to the police headquarters.